Australian Communications Minister Malcolm Turnbull has called for the country's schools to introduce IT skills such as coding to students much earlier than they do now, suggesting that children as young as five or six should be introduced to coding.

A new program launched by the Victorian government is aiming to assist in generating a potential AU$3.5 billion productivity boost by improving the information and communications technology skills among small and medium-sized business owners.

AnandTech and The Loop's Jim Dalrymple claim that the iPhone 5 will not ship with Near Field Communications (NFC) hardware. If true this would give Android (and Windows Phone) a boost and severely hobble PassBook.

Phonemaker plans to reduce headcount to return Devices & Services arm into profitability, while investing in its Lumia smartphones and location-based services. It also sells Vertu to an European equity firm.

Software used internally should still be protected even if there's less risk, and companies should know limitations of copyright law and create holistic regime to safeguard intellectual property, say observers.

Short attention span of younger employees leads to high turnover rate, says software exec, who points to cloud-based platforms as way to engage these professionals and facilitate communications with their supervisors.

Sites hacked or defaced include those from state-owned telcos and government agencies, reveals Minister of State for Communications and IT, who adds the government now working to upgrade skills to cope with hackers.